Richardsonian
Gymnasium, Town Hall

1892  Eldridge Gymnasium

Alice Eldridge built the gymnasium in 1892 in memory of her cousin Ellen Battell Stoeckel’s son Frederic Battell Terry, who died unexpectedly at the age of sixteen. Designed by Henry Rutgers Marshall and constructed of buff-colored pressed bricks with a broad sloping roof that was originally terra cotta tile, the gymnasium offered rowing machines, exercise apparatus, a bowling alley in the basement, and two tennis courts in front where the CT State Championships were held. The southeast extension was originally a porte-cochère, and the large veranda on the west has been enclosed. Dances, parties, lectures, and recitals were held in the Gymnasium. In 1906 Mark Twain’s daughter Clara Clemens made her singing debut at the Gymnasium, following which the author gave his now-famous speech on stage fright. The building was sold to the town in 1920 for use as a Town Hall. It was remodeled in 1985.

Historic District Walking Tour Map Index: 23